Family: it’s the most common theme in many Hallmark productions. This is no exception for When Calls the Heart. The theme of family has been written into every season, including their movies. While this important theme has found a way to weave itself into the heart (no pun intended) of this beloved show, there appears that there is a good reason for it. Family and loved ones are what keep our favorite characters going, especially when the going gets tough. They support and look out for one another. The town of Hope Valley is basically a family in itself, where everyone truly knows their neighbors as well as keep their best interests in mind. This sense of family has even inspired the Hearties themselves to create their own family, even helping each other out by creating re-cap posts like this one. Speaking of re-caps, why don’t we talk about the fifth season’s eighth episode?

Just a reminder: If you did not see this episode of When Calls the Heart, there may be spoilers within this re-cap.

Season: 5

Episode: 8

Name: Weather the Storm

Major Stories:

• After the spoken agreement between Mr. Jenkins and Joshua Baxter, Abigail discusses her concerns to Mr. Jenkins about the possibility of Joshua led town. To ease her fears, Mr. Jenkins agrees to delay the deal in order for Abigail to persuade Greta to become Hope Valley’s investor. After this conversation, Abigail and Henry visit Greta at the saloon to tell her the news. Greta feels like she is being taken advantage of, even though Abigail does to best to explain the situation. Feeling defeated, Abigail talks with Elizabeth at her café about what she should do next. Elizabeth reveals that she has contacted Duncan in the hopes that he and his mom can settle their differences. Abigail thinks that reuniting Duncan and Greta is a great idea and supports Elizabeth’s plan. Several days later, Elizabeth and Abigail meet with Greta at the saloon. Greta feels that she is being pestered by others, especially when she sees Duncan. He explains how sorry he is for being negative toward Greta after his father passed away. To help Greta take a step toward forgiveness, Abigail shares how things were not perfect between her and her son, seeing no importance to all the negativity looking back on it. As a last attempt to reunite with his mother, Duncan introduces her to his wife and children, who are named after Duncan’s parents. Moved by this encounter, Greta chooses to forgive Duncan and accept his family as her own. This reunion takes place at the right time, as it helps Abigail to not only persuade Mr. Jenkins to sign the contract with Greta, but also to secure an investor in order to reopen the bank.

 

• Bill and A.J. prepare to their journey so that A.J. can go to jail. When Abigail comes to the prison to wish them both farewell, A.J. gives her the dress from her undercover “mission”, hoping it will go back to Dottie. When they do eventually go on their journey, both Bill and A.J. are stopped by a sudden onset of rain. As they hide from the rain with a makeshift shelter, A.J. tries to learn more about Bill, where she finds out that he has had an unsuccessful marriage. After the rain stops Bill discovers that A.J.’s horse is missing. Trying to make the best out of the situation, A.J. suggests that they both ride the rest of the journey on Bill’s horse. While removing a rock from his horse’s shoe, A.J. warns him of a rattlesnake close by. Bill steps in front of A.J. in order to protect her. This causes Bill to not only get bit by the snake, but also for his horse to run away. Throughout the day and into the night, A.J. tries whatever she can to save Bill’s life. The next morning, Bill wakes up, in a bad state of health, to find that A.J. has disappeared. When he calls her name several times, he discovers that A.J. left him in order to find help for him. Shortly after her arrival, Bill is given the anti-venom in the nick of time. Before he is transported by the Mounties, he shares with A.J. that he found a way to help her get a reduced jail sentence, giving her hope of a second chance.

Minor stories:

• One day in class, Elizabeth assigns her class a project where each group has to explain a specific part of weather. Harper and Emily are assigned to discuss wind. Toward the beginning of the project, Harper convinces Emily to build an anemometer not only because he claims she and Hattie are the best students when it comes to science, but also because Emily seems enthusiastic about this part of their project. Emily agrees to make the anemometer and ends up putting together the whole project. Several days later, Emily and Harper present their project to the entire class. When Abigail asks Harper about the project during the presentation, he appears to not comprehend the material. After class, Harper admits to Elizabeth that he let Emily do all the work on the project because he feels he isn’t good at science. Elizabeth believes that Harper’s actions cost him a valuable opportunity to learn. To give Harper a second chance, Elizabeth gives Harper an incomplete but lets him work on the project again. She even allows Emily to tutor him on the material.

 

• Carson’s sister-in-law, Rhonda, pays Carson a visit. While catching up, Rhonda reveals that she has a tumor in her brain. She tells him that she has heard that a surgery is available to remove the tumor, but very few doctors actually perform the surgery because of how risky it is. Rhonda shares that she came to Hope Valley in the hopes that Carson can perform the surgery, but Carson refuses because of how he lost his wife performing the same surgery. He writes to a doctor in a neighboring town, hoping that Rhonda will receive the surgery. Unfortunately, that doctor sends a reply to Carson, rejecting the opportunity to operate on Rhonda. Both Rhonda and Faith continue to encourage Carson to perform the surgery, despite his fears of losing his sister-in-law. When Rhonda develops a very bad headache, a symptom of the tumor, Carson realizes its now or never when it comes to performing the much-needed surgery. After several hours, Carson and Faith reveal that not only was the surgery a success, but Rhonda’s life was saved as well.

Some thoughts to consider:

• I really like how the writers of When Calls the Heart have developed storylines for some of the students in Elizabeth’s class. Ever since When Calls the Heart: The Christmas Wishing Tree, these stories have helped the Hearties to learn more about these precious characters. I wonder if another student will get their story told in the When Calls the Heart Christmas movie later this year?

 

• I noticed that Sarah Grey, the actress who portrayed Mick’s daughter in the Wedding March series, also portrayed Rhonda in this episode. She is now the second Wedding March actress to appear on When Calls the Heart. Do you think more actors from the show could appear in future Wedding March movies? So far, Aren Buchholz starred in Wedding March 2: Resorting to Love, making it a possibility for other actors on the show to make appearances in this movie series.

 

• Like I mentioned in my very first Sunset Over Hope Valley post, this episode really made an effort to bring up references to earlier seasons. When Abigail mentioned her deceased son, it felt like such a blast from the past. I also felt this way when Bill talked with A.J about his past marriage.

What are your thoughts on this episode? Are you looking forward to the next episode? Share your thoughts in the comment section!

 

Have fun in Hope Valley!

Sally Silverscreen